Pharaoh: 3 Open Source Clones Compared
These three projects form a fork lineage. Ozymandias (Julius) began the effort to retarget the Julius/Augustus (Caesar 3) engine at Pharaoh, and though its own README calls the work unfinished, it can load original save games and play early campaign missions. Development then split two ways: dalerank's Akhenaten forked that C++ codebase and is now the most actively developed of the three, with cross-platform builds including web and Android; Banderi's Ozymandias instead migrated to the Godot engine but describes itself as still barebones, with only basic structure and menu logic in place. All three require an original, patched Pharaoh plus Cleopatra installation to run.
Comparison table
Availability
- Status
- Playable
- Platforms
- Web, Windows, Linux, OSX
- Play in browser
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Active
- Last updated
- today
- Stars
- 496
- Contributors
- 73
- License
- AGPL-3.0
- Engine
- SDL2
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- YesRequires original Pharaoh game assets (must have Pharaoh + Cleopatra expansion; demo version not supported).
- Modding support
- YesSupports modding through .sgx archives via --mods parameter; hot-reloading of JavaScript scripts from disk supported with --mixed parameter.
Availability
- Status
- Playable
- Platforms
- Windows, Linux, OSX
- Play in browser
- No
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Sporadic
- Last updated
- 7mo ago
- Stars
- 126
- Contributors
- 44
- License
- AGPL-3.0
- Engine
- —
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- YesRequires original Pharaoh installation with Cleopatra expansion; settings and saves are stored in game data directory.
- Modding support
- —
Availability
- Status
- Unplayable
- Platforms
- Windows, Linux, OSX
- Play in browser
- No
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Sporadic
- Last updated
- 7mo ago
- Stars
- 6
- Contributors
- 1
- License
- —
- Engine
- Godot
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- YesRequires original Pharaoh game files; uses Godot engine to recreate the game.
- Modding support
- —
| Title | Akhenaten | Ozymandias (Julius) | Ozymandias |
|---|---|---|---|
| Status | Playable | Playable | Unplayable |
| Platforms | Web, Windows, Linux, OSX | Windows, Linux, OSX | Windows, Linux, OSX |
| Play in browser | No | No | |
| Mobile | No | No | No |
| Project health | |||
| Development status | Active | Sporadic | Sporadic |
| Last updated | today | 7mo ago | 7mo ago |
| Stars | 496 | 126 | 6 |
| Contributors | 73 | 44 | 1 |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 | — |
| Engine | SDL2 | — | Godot |
| Compatibility | |||
| Requires original assets | YesRequires original Pharaoh game assets (must have Pharaoh + Cleopatra expansion; demo version not supported). | YesRequires original Pharaoh installation with Cleopatra expansion; settings and saves are stored in game data directory. | YesRequires original Pharaoh game files; uses Godot engine to recreate the game. |
| Modding support | YesSupports modding through .sgx archives via --mods parameter; hot-reloading of JavaScript scripts from disk supported with --mixed parameter. | — | — |
| Preview | |
Known limitations
- save_compatibility: Can load original save games from Pharaoh and play initial campaign missions without major issues, but full compatibility not guaranteed.
- compatibility: Game must be patched to the last version to run Ozymandias; work is unfinished but can load original saves and play early campaign missions.
- compatibility: Project is still early in development with barebones structure and menu logic.
Frequently asked questions
Are the Pharaoh clones on this page open source?
Yes — every clone catalogued here is an open-source project. Availability, license, and development-status details for each one are listed in the comparison table above.
What license do these Pharaoh clones use?
Akhenaten and Ozymandias (Julius) (AGPL-3.0).
Do I need to own the original Pharaoh to play these clones?
Akhenaten, Ozymandias (Julius), and Ozymandias require original game assets to play.
Can I play any of these Pharaoh clones directly in a browser?
Yes — Akhenaten has a browser-playable build linked in the comparison table above, no install required.
Which Pharaoh clone is the most actively maintained?
Akhenaten is currently under active development, based on recent commit activity. See the "Development status" row above for every clone's current status.
See the full write-up for each clone, or go back to Pharaoh.